Developing a Spacesuit Injury Countermeasure System for Extravehicular Activity: Modeling and Analysis

Anderson, Allison P.; Diaz, Ana; Kracik, M.; Trotti, Guillermo; Hoffman, Jeff; Newman, Dava

doi:10.2514/6.2012-3548

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…While a number of factors have been identified which directly contribute to injury risk, including restricted normal joint motion, physical contact with suit components, and improper suit fit (Anderson et al, 2012;Opperman et al, 2009); another contributing factor may be the physically demanding nature of operating the suit itself. During all EVA operations, the EMU is pressurized to 29.6 kPa differential (4.3 psid).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…With the extensive amount of required training time spent in an EMU, an association between EVA training time and musculoskeletal injuries has been observed (Charvat et al, 2015;Viegas et al, 2004;Williams & Johnson, 2003). While a number of factors have been identified which directly contribute to injury risk, including restricted normal joint motion, physical contact with suit components, and improper suit fit (Anderson et al, 2012;Opperman et al, 2009); another contributing factor may be the physically demanding nature of operating the suit itself. During all EVA operations, the EMU is pressurized to 29.6 kPa differential (4.3 psid).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterization of Joint Resistance and Performance Degradation of the Extravehicular Mobility Unit Spacesuit

Amick

Reid

England

et al. 2015

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual

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Introduction:The primary objective of this pilot study was to characterize human performance degradations caused by the pressurized Extravehicular Mobility Unit Spacesuit (EMU). Method: This study assessed maximum strength (force) for elbow flexion/extension and shoulder abduction/adduction for three EMU suit conditions. Results: Statistically significant differences were observed between suit conditions during elbow flexion. Differences of practical significant were observed between suit conditions for mean peak elbow flexion and extension, but not for shoulder abduction/adduction. EMU resistance to movement was found to differ based on the direction of movement. Discussion: Characteristics of the EMU spacesuit may reduce performance for some movements and improve performance for others.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of Joint Resistance and Performance Degradation of the Extravehicular Mobility Unit Spacesuit

Amick

Reid

England

et al. 2015

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual

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“…During EVAs, astronauts must wear gas-pressurized spacesuits to protect their bodies from the harsh conditions of space. Although these spacesuits are effective in keeping astronauts alive, they are known to severely limit human performance (i.e., by reducing joint mobility and strength) (Amick, Reid, England, & Rajulu, 2015; Gonzalez, Maida, Miles, Rajulu, & Pandya, 2002; Morgan, Wilmington, Pandya, Maida, & Demel, 1996; Reid et al, 2014) and pose a risk of musculoskeletal discomforts and injuries (Anderson et al, 2012; Anderson, Newman, & Welsch, 2015; Charvat, Norcross, Reid, & McFarland, 2015; Opperman, Waldie, & Newman, 2009; Scheuring, Mathers, Jones, & Wear, 2009; Strauss, 2004; Strauss, Krog, & Feiveson, 2005; Williams & Johnson, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling Occupational Fingernail Onycholysis Disorders in the Population of US Astronauts Who Have Engaged in Extravehicular Activity

et al. 2021

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Objectives Spacesuits are designed to be reliable personal spacecraft that preserve the life and well-being of the astronaut from the extremes of space. However, materials, operating pressures, and suit design requirements often result in a risk of musculoskeletal discomfort and injury to various areas of the body. In particular, this investigation looked at fingernails and their risk of developing onycholysis. Methods An onycholysis literature review was followed by a retrospective analysis of injury characteristics, astronaut suited training and spaceflight events, hand anthropometry, glove sizing, and astronaut demographics. Multiple logistic regression was used to assess the likelihood of onycholysis occurrence by testing potential risk variables against the dataset compiled from the retrospective data mining. Results The duration of event exposure, type of glove used, distance (delta) between the fingertip and the tip of the glove, sex, and age were found to be significantly related to occurrence of onycholysis (whether protective or injurious). Conclusion An initial risk formula (model) for onycholysis was developed as a result of this investigation. In addition to validation through a future study, further improvement to this onycholysis equation and spacesuit discomfort and injury in general can be aided by future investigations that lead to better definition of the threshold between safe and risky exposure for each type of risk factor. Application This work described a potential method that can be used for EVA spacesuit glove onycholysis injury risk analysis for either iterative glove design or between glove comparisons, such as during a product downselect process.

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“…The EMU components come in discrete sizes to accommodate a wider range of astronauts but has consequently led to spacesuits that do not optimally fit the entire astronaut population [4][5][6][7] . The combination of poor fit and gas pressurization creates a suit environment that is difficult to move in 2,6,8,9 , causes injuries 7,[10][11][12][13][14] , and limits range of motion during extravehicular activity (EVA) [15][16][17][18][19][20] . The next generation spacesuit built for planetary exploration is the xEMU, which is capable of pressurizing up to 8.2 psia (56.5 kPa) 21 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Revisiting Decompression Sickness Risk and Mobility in the Context of the SmartSuit, a Hybrid Planetary Spacesuit

Kluis

Diaz‐Artiles

2021

Preprint

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Gas pressurized spacesuits are cumbersome, cause injuries, and make completing tasks efficiently difficult. Decreasing the gas pressure of the spacesuit is an effective method of improving mobility, but reduction in the total spacesuit pressure also results in a higher risk for decompression sickness (DCS). The risk of DCS is currently mitigated by breathing pure oxygen before the Extravehicular Activity (EVA) for up to 4 hours to remove inert gases from body tissues, but this has a negative operational impact due to the time needed to perform the prebreathe. In this paper, we review and quantify these important trade-offs between spacesuit pressure, mobility, and prebreathe time (or risk of DCS) in the context of future planetary EVAs. These trade-offs are highly dependent on the atmospheric conditions used in the space habitat or space station, and therefore, these conditions are also important considerations for future planetary exploration activities. In our analysis, we include three habitat scenarios (International Space Station: 14.7 psia, 21% O2, Adjusted Space Shuttle: 10.2 psia, 26.5% O2, and Exploration: 8.2 psia, 34% O2) to further quantify these differences. In addition, we explore these trade-offs in the context of the SmartSuit spacesuit architecture, a hybrid spacesuit with a soft robotic layer that, not only increases mobility with assistive actuators in the lower body, but it also applies 1 psia of mechanical counterpressure (MCP). The additional MCP in hybrid spacesuits can be used to supplement the gas pressure (i.e., increasing the total spacesuit pressure), therefore reducing the risk of DCS (or reduce prebreathe time). Alternatively, the MCP can be used to reduce the gas pressure (i.e., maintaining the same total spacesuit pressure), therefore increasing mobility. Finally, we propose a variable pressure concept of operations for the SmartSuit spacesuit architecture, where these two MCP applications are effectively combined during the same EVA to maximize the benefits of both configurations. Our framework quantifies critical spacesuit and habitat trade-offs for future planetary exploration, and contributes to the assessment of human health and performance during future planetary EVAs.

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Developing a Spacesuit Injury Countermeasure System for Extravehicular Activity: Modeling and Analysis

Cited by 7 publications

References 7 publications

Characterization of Joint Resistance and Performance Degradation of the Extravehicular Mobility Unit Spacesuit

Characterization of Joint Resistance and Performance Degradation of the Extravehicular Mobility Unit Spacesuit

Modeling Occupational Fingernail Onycholysis Disorders in the Population of US Astronauts Who Have Engaged in Extravehicular Activity

Revisiting Decompression Sickness Risk and Mobility in the Context of the SmartSuit, a Hybrid Planetary Spacesuit

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